DoubleDogFarm
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Trick to Growing Onions

The main "trick" is to grow the proper variety for your climate / day length. Day Neutral is another choice.

Proper spacing and fertile soil
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Eric

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jal_ut
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Nice Harvest!

DoubleDogFarm
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Thanks James, but this is 2012 harvest. I didn't plant onions this year. :cry:

Jan-Feb is just around the corner. Time to get the greenhouse in order.

Eric

JayPoc
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DoubleDogFarm wrote:The main "trick" is to grow the proper variety for your climate / day length. Day Neutral is another choice.

Proper spacing and fertile soil

Eric
Hmm....I think the soil is good, and I usually get the bag of sets from my local box store. They usually have three varieties...a red, a white, and a yellow, and they all seem to grow about the same...

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jbest123
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Hmm....I think the soil is good, and I usually get the bag of sets from my local box store. They usually have three varieties...a red, a white, and a yellow, and they all seem to grow about the same...
Try onion slips instead of sets.

DoubleDogFarm
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Virginia Cooperative Extension
CULTURE
PLANTING: Use sets, seeds, or transplants in spring for bulbs and for green or bunching onions. Seeds may be started indoors eight weeks before setting out. Use sets in the fall for perennial or multiplier types of onions.

SPACING: standard 1 to 6 inches x 12 to 24 inches; wide row 4 x 4 inches in rows up to 2 feet wide. Plant close, then thin using thinnings as green onions.

HARDINESS: bulb onions, hardy biennial; green or bunching, hardy biennial; Egyptian or perennial tree and multiplier, hardy perennial

FERTILIZER NEEDS: Apply 3 lbs. 10-10-10 per 100 sq. ft. before planting, use starter solution for transplants, and sidedress four to six weeks after planting with 2 lbs. 10-10-10 per 100 sq. feet (repeat four to six weeks later if needed).

CULTURAL PRACTICES
Onions are often grouped according to taste. The two main types of onions are strong-flavored (American) and mild (often called European). Each has three distinct colors - yellow, white, and red. In general, the American onions produce bulbs of smaller size, denser texture, stronger flavor, and better keeping quality than European onions.

Onion varieties have different requirements as to the number of hours of daylight required to make a bulb. If the seed catalog lists the onion as "long day," it sets bulbs when it receives 15 to 16 hours of daylight and is used to produce onions in Northern summers. "Short day" varieties set bulbs with about 12 hours of daylight and are used in the deep South for winter production. Seed of short day varieties started indoors in January should produce a harvest in June. Seedlings or sets of long day varieties set out in April will produce a harvest in August.

For scallions or green or bunching onions, use sets, seeds, or transplants of standard onions for spring; plant seeds of bunching varieties for summer scallions; or use Egyptian (perennial tree) and the yellow multiplier (potato onion) sets in the fall.


For bulb production, plant sets or transplants in early spring. Set 1 to 2 inches apart and 1 to 2 inches deep in the row. Thin to 4 inches apart and eat the thinned plants as green onions. Avoid sets more than an inch in diameter as they are likely to produce seed stalks. Too early planting and exposure to cold temperatures also cause seed stalk development. Some people have best bulb production using seedlings or transplants rather than sets. Egyptian tree or multiplier onions should be set in late October or early November. Plant 4 inches apart in rows 1 to 2 feet apart. Distance between rows is determined by available space and cultivating equipment.



Bulbs compete poorly with weeds due to shallow root systems. Shallow cultivation is necessary; do not hill up soil on onions as this can encourage stem rot. Insure ample moisture especially after bulbs begin enlarging. Onions should be harvested when about two-thirds of the tops have fallen over. Careful handling to avoid bruising helps control storage rots. Onions may be pulled and left in the field for several days to dry, then cured in a well-ventilated attic or porch for one to two weeks out of direct sun. Tops may be left on; if cut off, leave at least 1 inch of the top when storing. Thorough curing will increase storage life.
Eric

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jal_ut
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JayPoc, when did you plant your onions? I think in your locale, you could plant slips or sets mid February or at least by the first of March? Seed should probably be started about new years for planting out by March.
I would plant them 6 inches apart in rows spaced 12 inches. Be sure you have short day onions. Fertile soil, keep the weeds out, and enough water should get you some nice onions.

JayPoc
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I usually set a bunch out very early, then replant periodically throughout the spring and early summer, harvesting as I go along. I always leave a few of the earliest ones to try and get a good sized bulb, but again...golf ball size is about the norm. I'll pay closer attention to variety type and see what happens next year.

mattie g
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JayPoc wrote:I usually set a bunch out very early, then replant periodically throughout the spring and early summer, harvesting as I go along. I always leave a few of the earliest ones to try and get a good sized bulb, but again...golf ball size is about the norm. I'll pay closer attention to variety type and see what happens next year.
I planted both intermediate- and long-day plants around March 20 this past year, and ended up with mostly racquetball- to tennis-ball-sized onions, The intermediates did better for me, no doubt.

I definitely could have planted them earlier in the season, but the timing just didn't work for me. It was also my first time ever giving onions a real go. I'm going to shoot to plant them around March 1 this coming year, weather permitting (I.e. as long as it's not too wet and the long range isn't showing overly cold weather). I'll also give them just a little more space, though since I have a small garden I don't have a whole lot to work with. I'm hoping the extra 2-3 weeks and extra spacing makes a noticeable difference in bulb out next summer.

That all said, the onions are quite good. The long-day yellows are OK, but the white intermediate onions are absolutely fantastic!

imafan26
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I just started my fall onion seeds, Texas granex and red burgundy onions yesterday. Thanks for all the cultural info DD, I am going to see if I can get bigger onions by following your recommendations.



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